Frictionally operating devices, in particular multiplate clutches, which have a plate assembly which can be pressed together by means of an actuating piston, are known from the prior art. An end plate, which is often also referred to as a support plate or end disk, is associated with the plate assembly on the opposite side from that on which the force is introduced. The end plate is in rotary driving connection with one of the plate carriers of the frictionally operating device via a rotary driving section, and furthermore the end plate is or can be supported against the associated plate carrier in at least one axial direction by means of a retaining ring or the like. By virtue of this support for the end plate against the associated plate carrier, it is possible for the plate assembly to be pressed together, thereby producing torque transmission between the plate carriers. By virtue of this support and of the actuating force applied, however, the end plate is exposed to high bending loads in the axial direction, and the end plate must therefore have a particularly high bending rigidity in the axial direction.
In order to avoid bending of the end plate in the axial direction, use has been made in the past of solid end plates, and these have a correspondingly great thickness to increase bending rigidity in the axial direction. Moreover, a circumferential groove has been provided in the region of the rotary driving section of the solid end plate, this groove being intended to simplify the arrangement of the retaining ring in the region of the rotary driving section and thus also reduce the overall axial length of the plate carrier, a groove of this kind having been produced by a machining process or a forging process, for example. The known solid end plates have proven their worth in as much as their bending rigidity in the axial direction is increased. However, with solid end plates there is the disadvantage that they have a particularly high weight and, furthermore, the production of the solid end plate is made more difficult.
Patent DE 602 22 266 T2 discloses a two-piece end plate with a lower weight. On the one hand, the two-piece end plate is made up of a core plate in the form of an annular disk, intended to form a flat front side, which can be turned toward the plate assembly, and, on the other hand, of a separate support housing, the latter being intended to support the core plate on its side facing away from the plate assembly in order to increase the bending rigidity of the two-piece end plate in the axial direction. Here, the support housing is constructed substantially in the manner of a plate but, in contrast to the core plate, has a profile which is suitable for increasing the bending rigidity of the two-piece end plate in the axial direction, while it has been possible to significantly reduce the weight of the two-piece end plate in comparison with the abovementioned solid end plate. DE 602 22 266 T2 furthermore proposes to provide both the core plate and the support housing with a rotary driving section, thus enabling both to be connected in a torsionally rigid manner to the same plate carrier. As an alternative embodiment, it is furthermore proposed to set up a direct connection between the core plate and the support housing via suitable fixing means on the appropriate surfaces of the core plate and of the support housing in order to prevent relative rotation between the core plate and the support housing during operation. However, irrespective of the respective embodiment variant, there is the disadvantage with the two-piece end plate consisting of a core plate and a support housing that the production thereof can only be accomplished with an increased outlay.